Read this quote and honestly ask yourself if this applies to you.
“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians: who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”
― Brennan Manning
Brilliant. Truth. At first glance, it is easy to say, “Wow, that is powerful and so true.” Yes, there are many Christians that go to church and walk out the door and are rude before they even leave the parking lot. There were people who go to church and sleeping with someone else’s spouse in the same church.
It is easy to say we know people who are part of that problem. Priest that abuse boys. Pastors that steal money. We think they are the problem, and yes, they are. The bigger question is getting real with ourselves. I know that when I look back on my life I tried to be a “good” guy. I tried to do what was right.
My mom taught me right, but she was also not perfect. The other people who influenced me and the sin inside me won, a lot. I knew you weren’t supposed to have sex before marriage, but wink, wink, everybody did. Oh, it is OK if you were in a committed relationship. I’m not sure that’s what The Bible says. For many years I lived that way. I know that for a long time I justified it by my sin was not as bad as those others. Other than the Top 10, I don’t think God gave us a grading system. In fact, I think it says we ain’t supposed to judge others. I think we should look in the mirror.
Think about the person who doesn’t know God, they get curious about His love and the rules. They know us and know we break some of them. So, they get confused and we are just like the quotes says, we’re the problem if we only give lip service. If you aren’t sure about yourself, go and have a conversation with a respected pastor.
I’m not claiming to be perfect, or without sin. I am saying, I’m working harder to live the life and I’m better that I used to be at living the life God intended. It has changed my dating life considerably. Challenging. If we are truly a believer, would a person without hearing be convinced not by reading your lips, but by seeing noticing what you do?
Are we convincing people with our example. One of my favorite songs that I listen to each day is, I Wanna Live Like That by the Sidewalk Prophet and The Proof of Your Love by King and Country. I listen each day to remind myself. I don’t know about you, but I need a reminder.
Today I hope I am a better example than yesterday.
Thank you, God, for Grace, Truth, Love and Laughter,
Darren
(Reminder, this is just a journal of my mistakes, experience and thoughts along my journey to having a closer relationship to God. I do not claim to be an authority on the subject. If you want to know The Way, read The Bible. Find a Bible based church and get connected with other believers in your area.)
What church do I attend? Verve Church in Las Vegas http://vivalaverve.org
P.S. Thank you especially for grace.
Want to see more God Blog posts?:
http://darrenlacroix.com/category/godblog/
Search for yourself: https://www.biblegateway.com